Make my Way Back
by you'lllovemeandI'll loveyou
Summary: She fell to a world of terror and the sound of a gunshot. She woke alone, in the boot of a car, to the sound of shuffling feet outside and the feeling of blood drying in her hair.
1. Waking up alone

Make my Way Back

(I don't own the walking dead)

Chapter 1

…

She fell to a world of terror and the sound of a gunshot. She woke alone, in the boot of a car, to the sound of shuffling feet outside and the feeling of blood drying in her hair.

The first thing she registers is the pain, the pain is so bad she blacks out for a moment. The colors swirl around in front of her eyes and the nausea gets so bad she gets sick on herself.

She can vaguely hear footsteps approaching, her hand goes to where she keeps her knife, only to find the space empty. She realizes that it could be anywhere now, at Grady or with her group. That thought is cut off by another wave of overwhelming pain, sending her back into the darkness.

…..

She doesn't need to open her eyes to know that she'd back in Grady again, that sickeningly strong smell of detergent would be forever engraved in her brain, bullet wound or not. Dr Edwards is standing by her bed when she does eventually open her eyes.

"Good, you're up" he says with a forced smile

"Ho-How long was I out?" she croaks out, her throat incredibly dry.

"four days. We had to put in a breathing tube for a bit" he says as he offers her some water which she cautiously sips at "Understandably you had some swelling in your brain. I couldn't open you up to have a look, we don't have those kinds of resources but I did what I could. You're lucky it only scraped the surface of your brain."

Her hand absently lifts to her head, she can feel where they've shaved her hair, bandages replacing where tangled blond tresses used to lie.

"My…my group" she mutters, her body already exhausted.

"They thought you were dead, almost got overrun by walkers and had to leave you in a boot. We heard you when we came out to clear them away"

She wants to ask more, she wants to shout at him, tell him that her family would never just leave her behind like that but whatever pain medications they have her on are pulling her back under and she lets them.

…

She stays at Grady for over a month while she recovers, it takes a week for her to get back on her feet, let alone be able to run. She doesn't eat much, choosing to stay in her room most of the time. She can feel the police officers' eyes on her when she does move around the hospital, all cautiously keeping her distance.

Officer Shepard is the only one to approach her beside Edwards when she does decide to leave "You know, with a brain injury like yours, it can be pretty unpredictable. Things have changed around here, they're better now, you could really contribute to something here Beth"

She tenses when Shepard gets too close, her hand itching towards the gun and knife they supplied her with. Looking at her with a steely gaze she says "I never asked to be taken from my family, the only reason I have this 'brain injury' is because of this place. Because your officers hit me with their car and kidnapped me. No offence but I don't want to be a part of any place that thinks that's ok. Now excuse me, I need to start looking for my family" she shoves past her, slinging the bag of medications and gauze Edwards slipped to her on her way out.

…

She's alone for a full month before she runs into any other people. She uses the tacking and hunting skills Daryl taught her to catch rabbit and snake, moving as much as she can. Some days she gets intense migraines, a side effect from her injury and she has to hole up somewhere for a day or two until it passes.

She's dirty, dried blood and god knows what else streaked throughout her hair, turning it brown instead of the light blonde it usually was when she finally stumbles upon another human being. He holds his rifle up to her, rightfully wary.

Despite her urge to grab her gun and make a run for it she knows the only way to get out of this peacefully is to hold her palms up, widening her eyes in an attempt to make herself look more innocent.

"What are you doing out here?" is the first thing he asks, looking her up and down.

"I'm looking for my family"

"You can cut the naïve act girl, I've been watching you for a couple of days. I'm not gonna hurt you, you have a name?" he asks, putting his gun down.

"Beth" she says hesitantly, her posture still tense.

"Morgan, where you heading?" he asks, moving forward slowly

"I'm not really sure, the last thing I remember my…partner saying direction-wise before I was taken was something about terminus"

He scoffs, shaking his head "Not a good idea my friend, that place has been burned to the ground"

Her heart sinks to the pit of her stomach, that was the only clue she had. Now she had nothing. Morgan must sense her despair because he soon speaks up.

"There's supposed to be a safe zone around here. I'd be happy to have you tag along with me, maybe your people are there" he suggests.

She doesn't want to get her hopes up, if the last few months had taught her anything it was that getting your hopes up only gets you hurt. So instead she nods, grabs her bag and sets off, her new friend by her side.

….

Morgan helps her remove her stitches on the road, thin pink puckered lines permanently etched on her forehead and cheekbone. She keeps the circular scar on her forehead covered up, not wanting to explain it. She knows he must be curious, the patches of hair missing, not to mention the exit wound on the back of her head.

She's glad he doesn't pry though, she's not ready to talk about the nightmares raging on inside her mind. She has to muffle her screams when she when wakes from nightmares most nights, still thinking Dawn or Gorman has her trapped there again.

They have to hole up in an old cabin one night when a migraine hits, the cabin reminds her of the one she and Daryl burnt down all that time ago and she can swear she can taste moonshine on her tongue. Or maybe this headache's so bad she's delirious.

Either way she barely hears when another person enters the cabin. The next day when she wakes from her painkiller induced haze there's another man in the room talking to Morgan.

"Hey, you're awake" Morgan says, approaching her from where she was lying on the floor on top of some dirty blankets.

She winces slightly when she sits up but still keeps her eyes on the new man in the room, Morgan seems to sense her apprehension and smiles "it's alright girl. This is Aaron, he's from Alexandria, the safe zone we've been looking for"

She swallows down a scoff, either this man was lying or he was just a naïve as she used to be. Safe zones didn't exist anymore. Still, she manages a small smile and gets up off the floor slowly offering her hand to him.

"I'm Beth" she says, shaking his hand quickly and watching as his eyes drift to the dirty bandage on her head, patting it gently with her hand she explains "I ran into some bad people a while back"

He continues to stare at her with a confused look for a few more moments before shaking his head "I'm sorry, I don't mean to stare. It's just… you sound like someone I've heard of" he smiles before continuing "Never mind…are you okay to travel? If we leave soon we should be able to get back in a day or two"

"I'm fine" she says, despite her pounding headache. She'd rather get out on the road sooner than later.

They pack up quickly, not having much to pack anyway and set off towards their new destination. Little did Beth know, she'd be finding a lot more than she expected.


	2. Do what you have to do

Make my Way Back

Chapter 2

(I'm so glad you guys like this! As a bethyl shipper, I was so disappointed with the way they ended Beth's story, as I felt she had so much more potential. I know she probably couldn't have survived that wound but a girl can dream, right?)

…..

The sun bore down heavily as Beth, Morgan and Aaron made their way through the forest. They had been walking for two days now, according to Aaron they were getting close. Beth kept mostly to herself, trailing slightly behind as Morgan and Aaron discussed Alexandria. While they were walking, Beth put the tracking skills Daryl had taught her to use, noting the way leaves were placed on the ground, how certain patterns meant rabbits were nearby.

"So, Beth, what's your story?" Aaron asked, breaking her out of her reverie

She glanced up at him, her jaw clenched slightly as she tried to think of something to say.

Morgan chuckled "She don't like to talk about it much, do you girl? We've been travelling together for weeks, barely gotten more than a few sentences"

"It's not something I like to remember" she snaps, turning her eyes to the ground.

They walk in tense silence for a few minutes, before she starts to feel guilty "I'm sorry… I know you have both told me about your pasts but, believe me, mine isn't something you'd want to hear"

Neither says anything, choosing to let it go and she's about to change the subject when she notices some prints on the ground to her left. Crouching down, she studies them for a moment before standing back up again. Keeping a calm façade, she quickly catches up with Aaron and Morgan a few metres ahead.

Keeping her voice low she mutters, "There's been people around here, two, maybe three"

Aaron straightens up, his eyes more alert while Morgan clicks the safety off of his gun. Beth keeps scanning their surroundings as they walk, trying to see if there's any more signs of these people.

She hears the crack of twigs breaking behind her a second too late, a hand grabbing her ponytail and pulling her back. Warm breath hits her neck as a knife is pressed to her throat and her stomach churns.

"Mmm, we haven't seen such a pretty girl in quite a long time, have we fellas?" the voice breathing on her neck sneers.

Morgan makes a move to point his gun and two more men exit from the trees beside them.

"Ah, ah, ah. I don't think that's a good idea" the one next to him says as he points his gun at his head.

"We don't want any trouble" Aaron says, holding up a hand as a gesture of peace.

"Neither do we, hell we were going to leave y'all alone until we saw this little thing trailing behind you" the man holding Beth chuckled, sniffing her hair "Damn, she even smells as good as she looks"

She resists the urge to struggle, knowing it would only make things worse and stays focused on trying to figure a way out of this. The two men are entirely focused on Aaron and Morgan, their guns pointed at their heads in case they tried anything and Beth uses this to her advantage. Subtly she lowers her hand to her waist, slowly sliding her knife under the thick sleeve of her cardigan.

She widens her eyes like she did when she met Morgan, wobbling her lip and pretends to squirm against him "W-whatever you want, I'll do it. Just please don't hurt them" she whimpers, waking her voice tremble.

Morgan yells out her name, she locks eyes with him and tries to give him a look behind the quivering mess she was pretending to be. She doesn't get the chance to see if he understood her because the man behind her chuckles and raises his hand above her waist, squeezing her just above her ribs.

"Such a delicate little thing, aren't you? Don't worry, Sammy's gonna take real good care of you" he says, reaching for the button on her jeans.

She pushes his hand away "N-not here… p-please, I don't want them to see" she pleads.

He sneers before pushing her toward another part of the forest "The lady would like some privacy, keep an eye on these two. If they try anything… kill them"

She pretends to stumble and forces out some tears as he pushes her further and further away from them, trying to act like the whimpering, mess of a woman she wanted them to think she was.

Eventually he pulls her to a stop, shoving her to the ground "Alright, I think we're far enough"

She turns to him, seeing his face for the first time. He's pale, with a long, slanted nose and thin grey slits for eyes. His dirty blonde hair is cut short and she can see a long, thin scar running down his face, probably from another victim.

"It'll be better if you don't struggle" he says, pulling her to a tree by her hair "You are by far the best catch we've gotten, the last few wouldn't storm squirming but you? You're not a fighter are you?"

She forces out a sob, the reality of what's about to occur hitting her. Either way it goes, another part of her was going to be irrevocably changed. She raised herself to her feet, whimpering when he pushed her against the tree.

"P-please, you don't have to do this" she whimpers, giving him one final chance.

"Oh, but I want to… Is this your first time?" he asks as his lips press against her neck, his fingers trailing the edge of her shirt. She has to resist the urge to vomit and he takes her trembling as an answer and laughs "Don't worry, I'll make you feel good. Maybe after we're done, you could join me. A little thing like you needs a real man to protect her, don't you angel?"

His hands go to her jeans, popping open the button. She has to force herself not to shake as the knife she'd kept hidden in her sleeve slides into her hand.

She keeps her eyes ahead, waiting until he was fully distracted with trying to tug down her jeans "You shouldn't judge a book by its cover" she says flatly, swiftly bringing up her hand and sliding her knife into the side of his neck.

Hot, red blood sprays out, coating her neck and chest as the man grabs at his neck, flailing to the floor. He reaches out for her, his eyes widening in rage and shock as he gurgles on his own blood.

She walks past him, leaving him to bleed out on the forest floor. He didn't deserve the mercy of a quick death.

Stealthily, she makes her way back to where Aaron and Morgan were being held at gunpoint, making sure they didn't see her approaching. She can hear them talking as she gets closer, both oblivious to what was about to happen.

"I can't wait to get my hands on that bitch, reckon she's a real screamer" the older of the two says, earning a chuckle from the other.

"She's much better than any of the other's we've caught, even with those scars I'd still fu-"

His words were cut off by the echo of a gunshot, blood and brain matter spraying across the ground as he fell forward. His partner turns around just in time for a bullet to hit him in the chest, sending his to the floor next to his dead friend.

Beth stalks over, staring down at the man with a look of rage and disgust "You will never hurt another person again" she snarls, slamming her knife into his skull.

Breathless, she straightens up, watching as Morgan and Aaron stare at her with a mixture of awe and concern.

"I did what I had to do" she states "They've done this before, who knows how many girl they've…" she trails off, unable to say the word.

Morgan approaches her slowly, patting her on the shoulder "You did what you had to do" he says, repeating her words.

"Your damn tough, where'd you learn to fight like that? If you don't mind me asking" Aaron asked

Grabbing a cloth from her bag, she wiped as much of the blood as she could off her face and neck, it'd have to do until she could find some way to wash "My…partner, he taught me a few things…before I was taken from him"

Aaron gets the sense that this wasn't something she wanted to talk about and dropped it, instead suggesting they move forward "My partner should be up ahead soon, he likes to go hunting sometimes so you never know"

Beth looks the ground as they walk, her mind drifting to Daryl "That's a good skill to have, I can hunt a little too"

Morgan scoffs "A little? Little lady over here has been keeping us fed the whole month since I found her"

She blushes as Aaron looks at her, interest piqued.

"Well maybe you can hunt together. With your gun and his crossbow, we'll definitely never go hungry" he states with a smile.

She freezes, stopping them in their tracks "C-Crossbow?"

He frowns, not understanding what's wrong "Yeah, this massive one. I don't know how he carries that thing around"

Looking up towards where they were headed she asks him "How far up is he?"

"Is something wrong?"

"Just tell me how far away he is!" she shouts

"Beth, what's going on?" Morgan asks, trying to calm things down.

"This man, is his name Daryl?" she asks, inwardly pleading for him to say yes.

He nods, his eyes flickering to the bandage on her forehead again "You're her aren't you?...The girl he lost? He never said your name"

She nods, her heart thumping madly in her chest, he points ahead of them "About 300 metres northeast, there's a road. That's where we meet up"

She doesn't wait around for them, taking off in the direction Aaron pointed.


	3. Reunions

Make my Way Back

Chapter 3

….

Her head aches as she runs through the forest, she hadn't fully recovered yet and knew she probably shouldn't be exerting herself like this but she couldn't wait, she had to see him.

Her heart is pounding in her ears, her stomach, tight with anticipation and full of butterflies at the same time when she first spots the road. Slowing down she steps out, looking around until she spots him, standing with his back to her, next to a parked truck.

She just stands there, staring, waiting for the moment when he'd turn and they'd lock eyes. She can hear Morgan and Aaron catch up behind her, their pace slowing as they wait silently.

She can't breathe, after all this time, after everything that had happened she was finally standing in front of him.

He finally turns around, his eyes first just glancing over her to spot Aaron when it clicks and they rush back to her, widening in disbelief.

"..Beth?" he breathes out, the crossbow in his hands clattering to the floor.

It's like the sound of him speaking her name breaks her out of her trance and she runs to him, flinging herself at him at the same time he reaches out, his arms holding her tightly, feet dangling off the ground. Her arms wind around his neck as she mutters into his shoulder "I knew I'd find you, I knew it"

"B-but you were dead. I carried you out of that hospital" he mumbles, burying his face into her neck, she smelled of blood and sweat and god knows what else but like hell was he going to let her go anytime soon.

"I don't know how, they said they found me in a boot of a car" she explains, the tears she had been keeping in for a month finally seeping out.

"Oh god. Oh god I left you there, I left you with them Beth. I'm so stupid" he croaks out, his voice thick with his own tears.

She shakes her head into his neck "No, it's okay. I would have thought I was dead too"

He pulls away, brushing off the tears still on her cheeks "I'm sorry Beth"

She smiles at him, shaking her head again "It's okay Daryl. I'm okay, I'm here now, that's all that matters"

He turns to look away so she rests her palm on his cheek, forcing him to keep his eyes on her "Daryl, it's okay… now come on, take me home"

She pulls away, threading her fingers through his as they walk back to Aaron and Morgan, they both smile as they approach, Aaron stepping forward

"And I thought the world was rid of miracles, c'mon, let's get you back and you can get checked out by our doctor" he suggests, Daryl quickly look at her with panic. He'd seen the bandages, of course he had, who could miss them?

She smiles and gives his hand a squeeze, letting him know she was okay. That seems to calm him down enough but he still sits by her side in the truck on the way back, hand still tightly clasped in hers.

…

She gets more and more tense the closer they get to the gates of Alexandria, the big walls surrounding the town quickly approaching in the window. How would everyone react? Where was she going to stay? Daryl had told her that Maggie was there with Glenn but it didn't feel right staying with them, not after the signs she had seen on her way back to them.

She was almost shaking when they entered the town, the big gate closing behind them. She looked out the windows, it looked like one of the fake real estate villages, every house painted immaculately, some even with picket fences.

Daryl got out, going around and opening her door for her, when he saw the panicked look on her face he offered her his hand "C'mon, there's a whole bunch of people who'd want to see you"

She takes a deep breath, willing herself to stop shaking before taking his hand, easing herself out of the truck. She stands beside him as Rick approaches, the look on his face almost comical when he spots her.

He gasps "Maggie" and turns, sprinting off in the other direction before she can tell him not to. Daryl gives her a quizzical look at her disappointed expression, to which she shakes her head, mouthing 'later'.

She almost cringes when she hears her older sister shrieking her name, running to her and crashing into her, almost sending them both of them to the floor if Daryl hadn't steadied them.

"Careful, she's still got a head wound for god's sake" he mumbles, which makes Maggie go into fawning mode.

Weeping she looks over her sister's face, sobbing at the sight of the scars before crushing her into another hug.

Beth struggles to breathe beneath all of the smothering, more people are rushing up now, desperate to see her and it's like she's being caged in. She hesitantly takes Judith, cooing and bouncing her on her hip. She hugs Carol and Glenn, ruffles Carl hair much to his annoyance and smiles at everyone like she's supposed to do but inside she feels like a ticking time bomb, ready to explode.

Thankfully, Aaron intervenes, telling her that the doctor is ready to check her out before her 'interview' with the leader of the town. She silently looks to Daryl who nods before the two head off together towards the doctor's office, leaving everyone behind shocked.

She knows the smell of alcohol, her daddy was a recovering alcoholic and while she may have only had her first drink a few months ago, Maggie was no stranger to a party now and then. So when she enters the doctor's office the first things she notices is the smell of liquor, her nose wrinkling slightly.

Still, she sits on the exam bed and lets the doctor look her over, answering any questions he had. Daryl inhales sharply when he finally removes the dirty bandage, looking to the ground.

"Your doctor did a pretty good job, all things considered. H-have you had any side effects?" The doctor, Pete, asks, hiccupping.

Quickly glancing at Daryl, she hesitantly answers "I get nosebleeds sometimes, lose my balance every now and then. Sometimes it's hard to remember things, like words or people's names. I get pretty bad migraines too"

"How bad?"

"I can't move for a day or two, I get feverish, dizzy, sometimes I throw up. The pain is excruciating"

He nods, looking over her face. Looking away, he sighs "It's a shame, such a pretty face too"

She turns red, suddenly feeling the urge to cover her wound again. He wasn't wrong, she wasn't vain but she wasn't stupid. She knows she has a pretty face. Or _had._ She turns her eyes to her feet, trying to will her cheeks to stop flushing and Daryl lost it.

"Okay you know what? That's enough. You can check her out again tomorrow and you'd better be sober or I swear I'll make you wish you never see another bottle of whiskey ever again" he threatens, helping her off the table.

He's still seething when they get outside, his anger only being fuelled by the look on Beth's face.

"Daryl it's okay" she said, placing a hand on his arm which he shakes off soon after.

"No, it's not fuckin okay! That man, treating you like you're some sort of monster is not okay Beth!"

"He wasn't lying Daryl" she says, sighing "I mean look at me, my hair is in patches, I've got scars all over my face and I'm covered from head to toe in dirt and walker blood"

Despite how new this all is and his basic aversion to people touching him, he grabs her hands, squeezing them in an attempt to comfort her "Beth… even with all that… you're uh... you're still beautiful alright? Prettiest girl here" he says awkwardly, feeling his own cheeks start to get hot. Since when did anyone make him blush?

She smiles at him and quickly presses her lips to his cheek, "Thank you Daryl, it might not be true but… thank you"

He clears his throat, trying to dispel some of the tension he felt building in the air "So… uh, I could show you to Maggie's? You probably want ta shower"

"Actually… I was hoping I could stay with you.. and Rick and everyone"

He frowns at her, he'd noticed how she'd reacted to Maggie earlier on "Is something going on with you and Maggie? I thought you'd be thrilled to find her, given how much you talked about looking for her when we were together"

"It's just a sister thing, I just need some time" she answers and that's enough for him. He hasn't had much experience with women but he knew that if they didn't want to talk about it, it was probably best to leave it.

He shows her to where he lives, ignoring the looks everyone gives them when they head up the stairs to his house and not Maggie's. Once they're inside he shows her where the bathroom is, watching as she smiled with excitement at the thought of being able to have a hot shower.

"I'll be downstairs if you need me" he says, leaving her to do her thing.

When he hears to water running and is confident she's okay he makes his way downstairs, Michonne is sitting at the kitchen table, a pile of clothes in front of her.

"I got her some things, I doubt she'd want to stay in those filthy things" she says, pushing the pile towards him "How did the thing with Pete go?"

He snorts, setting the clothes aside for when Beth got out "I swear if Rick doesn't do something about him soon, I will"

She raised an eyebrow "What happened?"

"He basically said she was ugly, said it was a shame she had all her scars." He snapped, the anger stirring in the pit of his stomach again "And he was fucking wasted, as usual"

She looked up towards the stairs "Is she okay?"

"Yeah… I don't know, she thinks he's telling the truth" he muttered

"Did you tell her that that's bullshit?"

"I tried! I… I'm not good with this type of thing, I don't know how to do this" he confessed

"You're already doing it Daryl, just… give her time. I have a feeling that when she's ready to talk, it'll be to you" Michonne says with a smile.

A crash from upstairs interrupts them, "Beth?" Daryl calls out "You okay?"

There's no response and he bolts up the stairs, shouting her name. When he breaks open the door she's on the floor, hunched over, a towel wrapped around her.

At first glance he thinks she is crying when he kneels down next to her, her shoulders shaking. But when she looks up at him there's a brilliant smile on her face, laughter coming out of her mouth.

Thinking that maybe she's in shock he asks her "are you okay?"

Still laughing, she nods "I lost my balance"

He sighs with relief, brushing back some of her wet hair "C'mon, Michonne found some clothes for you, you can sleep in my room until we figure something out. I'll take the couch or whatever"

She lets him help her up, holding onto him with one hand "I can't take your bed Daryl, I'll sleep on the floor or something, it's fine"

"You really think I'm going to let you sleep on the floor with a head wound? I'll be fine"

"Daryl, I'll be fine. I've survived worse than this" she says.

The conversation crashes to a halt, flashes of him carrying her out of that hospital, of placing her in that boot. How long was she in there for? How long until someone found her? Was she scared? Did she think he…they had abandoned her?

Shaking the thoughts from his head he shows her into his room, "It's not up for discussion Beth. I'll go get your clothes" he says before going down stairs.

She looks around the room she's standing in, from what she's been told they've been here for a while. Yet Daryl's room is almost completely bare from personal items, save from his crossbow and bolts sitting in the corner. A glint beside his bed caught her eye, a shiny object laying on his bed side table. Shakily, she raises the knife in her hands, she thought she'd lost it forever and now here it was. Just like her family.

"Carol gave it to me" Daryl's voice speaks from behind her "I… I wanted to have a piece of you with me"

She smiles softly, setting the knife back down. He hands her the clothes which she graciously takes, before saying she should get some rest.

She nods, turning her back to him. Just as he's about to leave he calls out to her "Beth?"

She turns her head, "Yes Daryl?"

"You were right…. I missed you so bad"

Without another word, he leaves her to get dressed, wondering why the hell she had this warm feeling in her chest.


	4. Nightmares

Make my Way Back

Chapter 3

….

Beth woke with a shriek, quickly sitting up and kicking the sheets off her bed. Panting, she runs a hand over her sweaty forehead, wincing when she nudges the scar on her forehead. She could still hear the voice from her nightmare, could still feel the blood she had been drowning in, the coppery smell still overpowering in her nose.

Her stomach twists painfully and she jumps out of bed, dressed in some of the clothes Michonne had given her. Quietly she makes her way downstairs, she needed some air.

The cold air of the early morning bites at her as she exits the back door of the house, taking her gun and knife with her. She walks until she finds the only secluded place in the town, a few trees and bushes hiding her from view.

Sitting down against one of the trees, she tries to control her breathing. She just needed some space, she'd been back a few days now and hadn't had a moment to herself since. Maggie, obviously couldn't sense her discomfort, fussing over her constantly and practically exploding when she found out her sister wasn't going to be staying with her like she had obviously planned.

"B-but you're my sister! I just got you back Bethy" she whined, tugging at her arm.

Beth inwardly groaned at the nickname, she wasn't a child, hadn't been since she tried to kill herself way back on the farm. She'd changed, but apparently, no one else saw that, practically shoving Judith at her and remarking _'You'll be back to your old routine in no time!'_

The sound of leaves crunching from beside her interrupted her thoughts and she whirled around, knife at the ready. She relaxed once she saw it was just Daryl, sliding her knife back in its place against her hip.

"Did you follow me out here Daryl Dixon?" she says in a fake mocking tone.

"I heard ya scream, saw you run out the back door" he answers, the tiniest tinge of pink hinting at his cheeks.

Nodding she sighs "Nightmares. Sorry I woke you"

He sits down beside her, setting his crossbow on the ground beside him "Wasn't really sleeping that great either"

"You okay?" she asks, turning her head to look at him

"Aren't I supposed be the one asking you that?" he chuckles, his eyes flickering towards the scar the bullet left behind on her head "I keep thinking you're gonna disappear on me"

She knows he doesn't like to be touched and doesn't want to push his boundaries so instead she settles for moving slightly closer, their legs just touching "I'm not going anywhere, not when I just found you"

His blush deepens and his mind desperately scrambles for a way to change the subject "Do you have nightmares often?"

He inwardly cringes _'Good job Daryl, bring up whatever it is making her wake up screaming'_

She sighs heavily, looking down and wringing her hands "Pretty much every night… I see things, things I've had to do to survive, bad things"

He thinks back to when he first spotted her, the blood covered her clothes and smeared across her neck "Aaron told me how you saved them"

A bitter laugh escapes her mouth "Making it sound like I'm some sort of hero… I killed those men Daryl. And I know that they were terrible people and I know what they were planning on doing to me but I still _killed them._ And every time I close my eyes I can still feel his hands on me, I-I can still see their bodies"

"You did what you had to do, you're still you Beth"

"But I'm not" she says, staring him straight in the eyes "I know everyone looks at me and they still see the same weak, naïve girl who liked to sing and looked after Judith but I'm not her anymore. I'm different, I changed, I-I had to. And no one can see that"

He's not sure on how to comfort her, he wants to tell her that everything will be okay but bullshitting her wouldn't do any good. Instead he takes one of her hands from her lap, threading his fingers through hers.

"I'm sorry" she mumbles "I know there are worse things going on in the world. I shouldn't be complaining"

"I think you've earned the right to complain" he says, again glancing at her scar "And you're right. You are different, but you're still good Beth. The best person I know"

She gives a small smile "you're the only person who has actually talked to me like I'm an adult… thank you"

"Didn't do nothin" he grunts

"You did plenty Daryl Dixon" she says, quickly kissing his cheek.

His face flushes, heat spreading across his cheeks "C'mon, you should be sleepin" he says, getting up off the floor, pulling her up with one hand.

It's almost daylight when they get back, a new day breaking over the horizon. He stands awkwardly by the door when they get to his/her room.

"Daryl?"

"Yeah?"

She's sitting on the bed, watching him nervously "I know this sounds weird and you can say no if you want but-"

"What's wrong Beth?" he sighs

"I…I can't sleep, do you mind… staying with me?" she asks, blushing as she stares at him

Inside he's squirming, uncomfortable with this new feeling twisting in his stomach, but she's looking at him with those blue eyes. The same that have been haunting him for months and he finds he can't say no.

Propping his crossbow up in the corner of the room he quietly takes his shoes off before laying down on the bed beside her. She turns on her side, smiling at him briefly before closing her eyes

"Goodnight Daryl"

"Goodnight Beth"

…


	5. Beneath these scars

Make my Way Back

Chapter 5

…..

Beth tapped her foot nervously as she waited outside Deanna's office for her interview. She had had a basic one when she arrived a week ago but Deanna had asked her to come back in, so they could figure out what job to give her. Daryl had offered to wait with her but she wanted to do this herself, she was stronger now, she could handle a little interview.

Deanna's son, Spencer, stared as he walked past, his eyes zeroing in on the scars prominent on her face. She turned red, averting her eyes to her feet as she fiddled with the hem of her black jumper.

"Beth? You can come in now, thank you for waiting" Deanna said, opening her door.

Beth came in and looked around at her office, books littered her shelves, along with photos of loved ones and long lost times. It was as if, inside this room, the dead uprising had never happened. She sat down on the chair opposite, kindly turning down Deanna's offer of tea.

"So, Beth… Maggie has told me about you, and also about what happened but I'd like to hear it from you if that's alright" Deanna says, sipping at her tea

Beth was stunned, not one person from her family had asked her so blatantly about what she did or did not remember and yet here was an almost stranger, asking her about a traumatic event that had occurred not even three months ago?

Opening and closing her mouth a few times, she clears her throat before she can manage to get any words out "Uh.. I…I don't really remember a lot of what happened. I get bits and fragments but it hasn't all come back yet"

"What about before you got here? What did you do in that time?"

"I-I tried to track down my family.. I hunted, survived on my own until I met Morgan.. I'm sorry, I don't see how this is relevant" she says, a bit harsher then she intended to.

"We've made a good place out of this town, worked hard to get it to where it is. But all it takes is one wrong person and the whole thing could come crashing down. I won't let that happen" Deanna states, all warmness leaving her voice

"And you think I'm one of those people?" Beth spat, outraged at this woman judging her when she hardly knew her.

"I saw the state you were in when you arrived, Beth, I'm just trying to figure out where you would fit in best in this town. The way Maggie and Rick talked about you looking after little Judith, I would've put you with the children. But obviously, circumstances have made me have to look elsewhere"

Beth frowns, "Circumstances?" she asks, confused

"Well yes, I mean the uh… scars. Hardly appropriate for young children" Deanna says, sipping at her tea as if she hadn't said anything wrong.

Humiliation burns through Beth's body, her cheeks flushing and her eyes watering as she laughs "Oh, now I get it. I would scare the kids right, because I'm some sort of monster?" scoffing she stands up, the chair scraping against the wooden floors "You know what, put me where you want, or kick me out. I don't care. I'm not going to stand here and let you treat me like I did something wrong when everything I did was so I could survive"

She storms out of the office, slamming the door on the way out. The nerve of that woman, looking at her like she was Frankenstein's monster or something. Was that what people saw when they looked at her? Red hot shame spreads through her and tears prick at the corner of her eyes, her hand wiping the away furiously. She would not cry, she would not revert back to that girl.

She storms back to the house, fully intent on locking herself inside for the rest of the day when she collides into something.

"Beth!" Maggie cries out, hugging her again

Beth gently pushes her away "I'm not in the mood Maggie"

Maggie notes her teary eyes and makes a move to cradle her face "Bethy what's wrong? You're upset"

"Maggie, I mean it. Let go"

"Not until you tell me why you're upset… did Daryl do something?"

Beth shoves her away, she was really mad now "No! Why would you even ask that? I'm mad, because your leader doesn't want me near the children, thinks my face will scare the kids"

Maggie sighs, moving towards her again "Bethy, you don't understand. We just don't want the kids asking questions"

Beth laughs harshly, moving further away from her sister "You agree with her? Of course you do, why would you care about me?"

"How can you say that?" Maggie shouts, outrage

"Oh, just stop Maggie. I saw the signs" Beth says, her chest heaving " _Glenn-Go to Terminus…_ So, what? Did you just assume I was dead? Did you even bother to look for me?"

"I-I…" Maggie was lost for words, what had happened to her sweet little sister?

"I looked for you for weeks! Finding you was almost all I talked about! And you gave up on me! How could you do that?" She yells, weeks of pent up anger and frustration being released all at once.

"Bethy I couldn't bring myself to hope that you were alive, it was too hard. You were so small, I- I didn't want to think about you being out here alone" Maggie tries her best to explain

"So you just chose not to think of me at all?"

"No, Beth. You and Glenn were all I thought about" Maggie sobs, they're drawing attention now, Glenn making his way up to join her.

"Then why weren't you at the hospital?" Beth says, tears burning her eyes "Everyone else was there, Rick, Daryl, even Sasha and Tyreese. Where were you?"

Maggie sobs, she feels sick to her stomach as she chokes out the words "I-I was on a bus, to D.C. Eugene said he had a cure. I'm sorry Beth... I had to go"

"But you knew"

"…Yes" Maggie sobs.

There's a few seconds of dead silence, before the sound of Beth slapping Maggie across the face echoes through the air.

"You bitch!" Beth screams, ready to hit her again when two strong arms wind around her middle, holding her back.

"Calm down Beth" Daryl's voice speaks into her ear.

"Let me go Daryl!" she yells, pulling against Daryl's unyielding arms "Let me go!.. She gave up on me! She knew I was there and she still left!"

"I'm so sorry" Maggie cries, as Glenn leads her away

"I hate you! I hate you, I never want to see you again!" Beth continued to yell, tears now freely streaming down her face.

Once Maggie's out of sight and Daryl's sure Beth's calmed down he releases her, she quickly makes her way into her house, wiping her cheeks as she made her way to her room. She quickly grabs everything she unpacked a few days before and shoves it all back into her bag, blinking away any extra tears that appeared.

"What're you doing?" Daryl's voice booms from behind her.

"I'm packing" she says, swallowing down the lump in her throat "Deanna already thinks I'm dangerous, I doubt they're going to let me stay after what just happened"

Coming over to the bed, he grabs her hands, stilling them "what're you talking about?"

Sniffing, she looks up at him with wet eyes "My interview didn't go very well. Apparently, my face is too scary to be around kids. Oh, and I'm a danger to the community"

"she said that to you?" He growls, anger flaring in the pit of his stomach

"In so many words"

"That fucking… I'm gonna give her a piece of my mind" he snarls, pulling away and turning to leave

She grabs his arm "No don't Daryl, yelling will only get you in trouble"

"She ain't gonna get away with talking to you like that"

"Why not? It's what everyone's thinking anyway"

"That's not true" he protests

"It's what Maggie thinks"

"Fuck Maggie! Those kids would be lucky to be looked after by you! Those scars show you're a survivor, not some coward who locks themselves away and refuses to listen to the truth" He says, grabbing her by the shoulders "If they're gonna treat you like that then they don't deserve to have you look after their kids. You can come and hunt with me instead, ain't no one else I rather have"

She gives him a small smile "Really?"

"Yeah, we gotta keep up with your training Greene, don't want you getting rusty"

She slowly moves towards him, wrapping her arms around his middle. "They might not let me stay" she says after a moment.

Surprising her, his arms go around her shoulders, holding her tight against him "I ain't gonna let that happen. Not when I just got ya back"

She holds onto him for just a bit longer, for the first time in months, she felt safe, there in his arms. When she pulls away he gives her a small kiss on the forehead, shocking her into silence before he leaves.

He needs to have a talk with Rick.


	6. Nothing can stay good forever

Make my Way Back

Chapter 6

(I don't own the walking dead)

(So, I will be following some of the storylines in seasons 5 and 6 in this story, but changing them up a bit as you will see in this chapter. Please don't leave reviews about how this isn't how it happened in the show, I know it isn't, I have chosen to change certain things for a reason)

….

Things had been tense in the 2 weeks since Beth and Maggie's big blow-up. She had barely talked to her sister since, even though deep down, it hurt her to be fighting like this. They talk if needed during meetings or if they passed by each other outside but nothing besides that. She just couldn't seem to get over the fact that her own sister had chosen to get on a bus to D.C with some strangers even though she knew Daryl had found the hospital that had taken her.

Deanna had let her stay, after talking with Rick (and she suspects Daryl) she had been assigned to go on runs and hunting trips with Daryl, going on watch and looking after Judith if needed. Daryl hadn't pushed her to speak to her sister or apologise, waiting until she was ready to talk.

He stayed with her most nights now, only leaving if he had watch duty on the wall. She'd still wake with nightmares, screaming and thrashing, but Daryl quickly learned how to soothe her, calming her until she fell back asleep again.

Beth felt those feelings she had first felt back at the funeral home start to arise the more time she spent with him, he never made her feel uncomfortable, or like she had to explain herself. Eventually, she opened up about what she did remember after waking up, telling him about being trapped in the boot, waking up in the hospital four days later with her head stitched up.

He cried when she finished, apologising as she assured him that it was okay, that she didn't blame him or anyone from the group. Her stomach tightens when he tells her he never wanted to leave her, that he and Maggie had to be dragged away from that car.

"I wanted to bury you, thought you deserved to be somewhere nice. Somewhere with flowers and the sun shining down on you"

After that, they grew closer, catching the attention of a few other members of the group, namely Michonne and Rick. Neither said anything, when or if something happened, they'll tell them when they're ready.

"You got this Beth. Just relax" Daryl murmured quietly under his breath as Beth aimed the crossbow doe grazing in front of them.

She let out a deep breath, releasing the bolt. It flew through the air with a _whoosh!_ Before landing in the doe's neck, sending it to the ground with a whine.

She relaxed, smiling before going to put the doe out of its misery and retrieve the bolt "you did good girl, you really won't be needing me soon after all"

She flushes, rolling her eyes "You know I never meant that Daryl, I ain't ever gonna be as good as you"

"You talk yourself down too much, you look pretty good from where I'm standing"

Her blush deepens, a grin appearing on her face as Daryl turns pink "I didn't mean it like that… not that you don't look good… I-uh, we should get back" he stammers, moving forward to grab the deer.

Beth nods, grabbing hold of the three rabbits she and Daryl had caught earlier. They walk back together in silence, both too embarrassed to say anything. Daryl mumbles an excuse about having to skin the animals they caught. She watches as he walks off, an unfamiliar urge to go after him growing in her chest.

She shakes it off, going back to the house. Rick is inside, having lunch with Judith.

"How'd hunting go?" he asks as she takes the baby from his arms.

"Good, I scored a deer" she says proudly before she notices the stressed look on his face "Is everything okay?"

"No, it's… it's good news actually. Glenn and Maggie, they're uh… they going to have a baby" he says with a smile.

She experiences a few emotions upon hearing this, happiness, that her sister was having a baby, fear, that something could go wrong, and sadness, that their relationship was so strained she learned this from somebody else.

"That's… that's great news!" she says enthusiastically "Why did you look so glum?"

"It's just that I can't help but think about…" he trails off, looking at the baby in her arms

"Lori?" she asks, noticing the way he still flinches at her name "Rick, we're in a safer place right now. We have a doctor, a place for her to have the baby. It won't be like last time"

"I guess, we'll just have to work extra hard to make this place safe then, right?"

She nods, she still had her doubts about this place and how long things could last, but for the sake of Judith, and of her unborn niece or nephew she prayed it would.

She takes Judith with her to the vegetable garden, grabbing some fruit before heading back to the house. When Judith's down for her nap, she focuses on turning the fruit into some sort of dessert for the gathering tonight at Deanna's. She manages to make a crumble sort of thing, using custard powder and water to mix with the flour and sugar in place of butter. It's nothing like the ones her mama used to make back at the farm, but it tastes edible.

Carl eventually arrives home to watch Judith, dirt on his clothes from who knows where. She grabs the tray with a tea-towel and makes her way to Deanna's house for the meeting. Daryl's already there, talking with Glenn. Their eyes meet for a second before he averts his quickly. She sighs and goes to place her tray in the kitchen.

The meeting is long and Beth starts to feel a headache developing at the front of her skull as it continues, gingerly touching her head wound with a muffled wince. Rick comes in at one point, throwing a dead walker in the middle of the room. A few of the Alexandria women shriek, moving away.

Beth stands up, moving closer to get a look at the walker, and Rick who has walker blood on his clothes. He's yelling, telling the Alexandria people that no one was on watch and he'd found it stumbling by the gates.

His starts to talk about how if they want to survive they need to trust him, that they're weak but he can help make them stronger. His speech is interrupted by the doctor, Pete barging in, reeking of alcohol and brandishing Michonne's katana.

He comes towards Rick, swinging the sword around "Y-You're not one of us" he screams, his speech slurring slightly.

Beth, who was close to Rick, quickly backs away, her eyes widening as the sword swings where she used to be standing. Jessie calls out for her husband to stop, being held back by Carol. Beth's eyes meet Daryl's for a moment as Pete corners her and Rick, pointing the sword at the latter.

Reg, Deanna's husband comes forward, speaking softly "Pete, you don't want to do this"

"Get the hell away from me Reg" Pete snaps, making a move to push him away "He's not one of us"

"Pete just stop" the old man pleads, moving closer

"Get away from me!"

Deanna calls out to her husband, reaching for him. He holds a hand up "Not now" he whispers, moving closer.

"Get away!" Pete warns, moving the blade "Get away!"

"Now Pete, stop. Pete-"

Pete shoves him away, the blade of the katana slicing into Reg's throat, effectively stopping him from speaking another word. Blood splatters onto both Rick and Beth who stand there in shock as Reg falls to the floor, Deanna screaming for her husband.

"This is him! Don't you see it?" Pete rages on, waving the blood drenched katana around "This is all him"

Daryl and Abraham tackle him to the floor, Michonne kicking her sword out of his hands where it clatters to the floor. Beth moves to floor next to Deanna, wracking her brain to try and think of something she'd learned at Grady, some way to help him as she holds her hands over his throat, even though she knows he's beyond help. Deanna's sobbing over Reg's body, holding him close as he draws his last breath, choking on his own blood.

"No, my love, no"

Beth slumps back, her jeans and sleeves covered in blood, looking up, she tearfully shakes her head at Rick who sighs, muttering a curse word under his breath as he runs a hand through his hair.

"It's him" Pete continues to shout, not even deterred by what had just happened "This is him!"

"Rick" Deanna's broken voice breaks through the chaos, Ricks looks to her, his eyes asking permission and his hand moves towards his gun. Holding her dead husband, she nods "Do it"

Seconds later a gunshot echoes through the house, a bullet piercing Pete's skull. Jessie screams, turning away and into Carol's arms while the rest of them just stand there in shock. Daryl moves to pull Beth up off the floor, leaving Deanna to have a moment with her husband before Rick quietly slides a knife into the back of his skull.

Beth wills herself not to cry as she watches the older woman clutch the body of her dead lover, flashes of a similar gunshot echoing throughout her mind. The cooling blood feels sticky of her hands, the air in the room becoming unbearably hot. She excuses herself, wanting to clean up before Carl or Judith spotted her. She turns, almost colliding with Daryl as she makes her escape.

She keeps it together until she's safely hidden away in her room at the house, tears mingling with the blood on her face as she stands by the bed, unable to even change out of her soiled clothes. Daryl appears at the door at some point, a wet rag in his hand. He wipes the blood off her face, his thumb tracing over the scar across her cheekbone for a moment.

"You alright?" he asks, his voice full of concern as he looks her over.

She nods, staring down at his hands as they wipe hers clean from blood "Just sick of losing people" she mumbles, reiterating his words from months ago "I just wish I could've done something"

"Ain't nothing you could've done. Pete was an abusive drunk, no one wanted to accept it. It would've happened sooner or later" he says, shoving the dirty rag into his pocket to clean later.

She nods, she knows that, the rational part of her knows that. But the tears won't stop stinging at her eyes no matter how hard she rubs them "I-I'm sorry. I barely knew him" she sniffs "I feel like such a girl"

He pulls her into a hug, needing to feel her close just as much as she needed the comfort. He'd been terrified when Pete started waving that sword around, scared that he might accidently hit Beth and he'd lose her for real this time. The faint scent of copper hits his nose, noticing the flecks of red in Beth's hair when he pulled away "You have blood in your hair"

She frowns, tugging at her braid to take a look "guess I should take a shower" she says, grabbing some clothes from her part of the drawers in the room. He grabs her wrist before she can leave the room.

"Bout before… m'sorry, shouldn't have ran off on you. I just… ain't ever done this before" he mumbles, finally addressing the growing thing between them.

It's not a declaration of love, he's not even saying that he feels something in _that_ way and they definitely ain't gonna kiss just yet, but the words still warm her heart just the same. She smiles at him, softly touching his hand that's clasped over her wrist.

"It's alright Daryl… I haven't either. We'll just, figure this out as we go"

He nods, letting go of her wrist "You should get back to your shower", effectively ending the moment between them, he wasn't comfortable with these feelings just yet, she got that.

She nods before turning to leave, the smile never leaving her face.


	7. Everything will fall eventually

Make my Way Back

Chapter 7

(I don't own the walking dead)

…

Reg was buried the next day, Pete being buried outside down the road as Rick said "We don't bury killers here". The days that passed were tense, eyes carefully watching Rick wherever he went. Beth dropped a casserole over at Deanna's, trying to ignore the angry way Spencer looked at her as he took the dish. They were grieving, everybody did it differently.

Beth watched as Daryl spoke with Carol, holding Judith on her hip as Carl made funny faces at her. Although they hadn't talked about their relationship again with everything that's been going on but Beth was comfortable with how it was at the moment. They still slept next to each other each night, she'd let him make the next move when he was comfortable.

Their eyes meet for a moment, she smiled briefly at him, using Judith's little have to wave at him, he smiles back subtly, turning back to his conversation.

"So, are you and Daryl boyfriend and girlfriend now?" Carl blurts out, pulling back her attention

"W-what?" she gasps, "Why would you say that?"

"Well it's kinda obvious. You're always together, he sleeps in your room at night. Everyone can see the way you two look at each other"

She lets out a nervous laugh, playfully shoving his shoulder with her free hand "Always asking the tough questions huh?... I-I don't know what we are at the moment, I guess we're still trying to figure it out"

He shrugs "Well I think you two would be good together, you make each other better, happier. You're different when he's not around, it's as if you're subconsciously looking for him. He's the same"

A dreadful creaking sound interrupts their conversation, the both of them stepping off the porch to see where the sound was coming from. They both looked just in time to see the bell tower collapse, taking down a large piece of the wall with it. Walkers started to stumble in, their groans audible over the sounds of the panicked screams of the residents of Alexandria.

Handing Judith over Carl she turned to him "Take your sister and get in the house. Now Carl!"

"No way! I'm not going to hide like some kid, I can help" he protests over the wailing of his baby sister.

"Carl, I don't have time to argue over this. I'm the adult here and I need you to protect your sister okay? Please just go inside" she says, sternly, reaching for her gun.

He bites down his protests, unhappily retreating to the house with Judith. She turns her eyes back to the situation unfolding as soon as their inside. People are running left and right, locking themselves in their homes. She can see Jessie run towards her, her sons, Gabriel and Deanna behind her.

"Get in the house, GO!" Beth shouts, ushering them towards her home.

Daryl runs up to her, Carol on his flank "c'mon Greene" he says, pulling her along with him into the house. He rushes into their room, Beth following after him. He quickly grabs his crossbow and bolts, handing Beth an extra gun "I gotta find Rick, just stay here with the kids. I'll be back soon"

She frowns, grabbing at his arm when he attempts to leave "What?" She scoffs "No, I'm not letting you go out there alone, I'm coming with you"

"Beth, I ain't arguing with you about this, you're staying inside. That's final"

"You can't control where I go Daryl, you don't make my decisions for me"

"It ain't safe out there, there's walkers all over the place!"

"But it's fine for you to go out? For you to put yourself in danger?" she shouts

"That ain't the same" he sighs

"Why? Because I'm a woman?" She snaps, "All these weeks, you've been telling me how strong I am. Did you not mean a- "

He cuts her off by swiftly pressing his mouth to hers, cupping her face in his hands. It's over in a few seconds, she only just closed her eyes when he pulled away, resting his forehead on hers.

"I-I can't lose you again… I can't" he mutters, his breath fanning against her face "Please... for me, just stay inside"

She's still in too much shock to reply, nodding her head against his. Before she has a chance to even try to kiss him again, or think about how that one action had irrevocably changed their relationship, the door slams downstairs.

They break apart, each quickly moving downstairs. Rick and Michonne are standing by the door, both equally out of breath.

"What happened?" Is the first thing Daryl asks as he bounds down the stairs to his friend.

"The tower just collapsed, must have been more damaged than we thought from the wolves attacking us" Rick pants "there's walkers everywhere"

"Anyone get hurt?" Jessie asks from where's she's standing with Deanna

"Saw a few people go down, not sure who… Maggie's okay, she's hiding up on one of the walls" Rick says, glancing at Beth who mouths her thanks.

"What do we do now?" Carl asks, bringing Judith around to her father.

"I might have an idea, but you're not going to like it"

…

Beth gagged, pushing the vomit rising in her throat back down as Daryl and Rick dragged in a dead walker. Walker's never smelt nice but as Rick tore open its flesh with his knife the whole room was filled with the most awful stench she had ever smelt. Everyone pulled on their coats and then got to work, smearing the insides of the walker over them.

It was decided that since Gabriel wasn't good with a gun or a knife, he'd look after Judith as they made their way out. She was carefully strapped to his chest before the coat was pulled across, shielding her.

Beth grimaced as she spread more guts over herself, some getting into her hair, turning the blonde locks brown. She glanced towards Daryl, who had been staying as far away as he could since they came downstairs. He was busy talking to Rick quietly as they prepared their weapons.

She looked away, glancing around the room. She noticed Deanna sitting on the couch, the only one not getting ready to move out. She sat and watched as everyone got ready, a pillow clutched to her stomach.

She moved towards her, sitting beside her on the couch "You should get ready, we're probably going to head out soon"

Deanna looks up, a grim smile on her face "Not really much point"

Beth shakes her head "You can't think like that, you're this towns leader. They need you now more than ever"

"I was wrong about you" Deanna admits, "When you first arrived, I thought you would be bad for the community. I thought you were too damaged, wrong in the head… I was wrong. I'm glad you'll be here to look after my town after I'm gone"

A frown crosses Beth's face as she watches Deanna lie back onto the couch "What are you talking about? I get that things seem bleak right now but you can't just give up, your town needs you"

Deanna smiles, shaking her head "I'm afraid I won't be much use to anyone soon" she says as she moves the pillow that was shielding her stomach from view. The bottom of the shirt was tinged reddish brown, old and dried blood covering her side.

Beth's eyes widened as Deanna pulls up the shirt slightly, a sizable bite deep on her left side.

"Oh god" Beth gasps, her shaking hands going to apply pressure to the still bleeding wound.

Deanna chuckles "there's no use for that now, I'm already starting to feel hot"

Beth's eyes water as she bows her head, willing herself not to cry. She wasn't on the best terms with Deanna, but she never wanted this for her. To be taken away from her son so soon after the death of his father, it was cruel. Sucking in a deep breath she looks up "What can I do?"

"You can help me get upstairs, I don't want everyone to see me like this" Deanna says, pulling down her shirt and leaning up against the couch. Quietly, Beth helps Deanna upstairs, only managing to get a few looks from Daryl and Michonne.

She helps her down on the bed, noting the way Deanna is shivering as she lays down. She quickly slips out of the room and grabs a washcloth from the bathroom, wetting it before going back to Deanna. As she lays the washcloth on her head she can literally feel the heat radiating from her skin, despite how clammy and pale she looked "Do you want me to see if I can get Rick to find Spencer?"

Deanna shakes her head weakly, "No, I don't want him to see me like this. Better that his last memories are good ones, not of a knife going through my skull"

"I'm so sorry Deanna"

"It's alright, I guess I'll be reunited with Reg sooner than I thought. Was never cut out for this world anyway" Deanna states, turning and coughing "promise me you'll watch over my people after..."

Beth nods, moving closer towards the bed "Of course"

"Good" she croaks, "They'll need someone like you when all of this is over"

The sound of footsteps approaching the door turns Beth's head, Rick's voice calling out her name in the hallway. She looks back to Deanna, who nods. Before she leaves the rooms, he says one final thing to Deanna, letting go of all the hurt she had been feeling the last few weeks "I forgive you".

Rick turns when she calls out to him, his eyes immediately going to the obviously non-walker blood on her hands and clothes "Beth? Daryl sent me up to look for you… Is that blood?"

"It's not mine" Beth says, moving to grab another towel and wipe it off "There's something I have to tell you"

Rick straightens up, focusing all his attention on her. Gesturing to the door she just came out of, she continues "Deanna's in there. She's been bit"

Rick's eyes fly to the door, rapidly moving between it and Beth multiple times in shock "Beth? Why didn't you say anything?"

"She asked for privacy, she's already feverish Rick, she doesn't have much time" Beth states, finishing cleaning off the last of the blood.

Rick nods, before entering the room. Beth decides to give them some privacy, heading back downstairs. She feels multiple eyes on her when she reaches the bottom, but it is Michonne who approaches her.

"Is everything ok?" She asks, lowering her voice so not to raise alarm.

Beth shakes her head "You may want to go upstairs" she suggests.

The raven-haired woman nods, before quietly making her way up. It is not even 10 minutes later when they come back down, one less gun on Rick's belt.

"It's time to go" he announces, going to where his children were, Judith already safely strapped onto Father Gabriel.

Slowly they make their way out of the house, tensely watching as walkers made their way past them. They all link hands once they're outside, Beth staying close to Gabriel and Judith. Gunshots ring out from the house behind them and Beth winces, knowing that it meant Deanna was gone.

They slowly make their way to the hall, the sky getting continuously darker. As Rick and Daryl lead the group on one end, Daryl holds the back, crossbow at the ready. She hears Sam, Jessie's youngest son cry out for his mother, her usual calming words not soothing him. A couple of walkers turn at the noise as Jessie desperately tries to calm him down but it's too late.

A walker bites down on Sam's head, eliciting a scream from his as he is dragged away from his mother. Jessie loudly weeps, helplessly watching as her son's life ends and so she too is being overrun by walkers, her hand still gripping Carl's.

Beth is forced to watch helplessly for a few moments as Carl struggles to pull his arm back, getting dangerously to being bit by the undead swarming around him. She flinches when the first blow of Rick's machete lands on Jessie's arm, fresh blood spraying onto the ground. Blow after blow land until Jessie's arm is severed, releasing Carl from her grip.

The group only has moments to take in the deaths before Ron is pointing a gun at Carl at Rick, mumbling "You" over and over again as he shakily holds the gun. Michonne sneaks up behind him, stabbing her katana through his chest at the same time a gunshot rings out.

There's a few seconds of silence before Michonne gasps, causing multiple heads to turn to where she was looking. Carl stumbles forwards, blood freely dripping from the gunshot wound over his right eye.

"Dad?"

…...


	8. Another day, another bruise

Make my Way Back

Chapter 8

(Don't own the walking dead)

…..

Rick sobbed, watching in horror as his son fell to the ground, his blood spilling onto the concrete. Crying out his name, he rushed to his eldest child, quickly picking him up off the ground. The smell of the fresh blood had begun to attract walkers, each clamouring to get to them now. Knowing Carl needed to get medical help as soon as possible, Daryl, Beth, Gabriel and Michonne formed a sort of barrier around Rick and Carl, using their weapons to hold off the walkers.

They rushed to the clinic in the town where Denise, a resident of Alexandria had taken over the medical duties after Pete's death. Quickly they stormed inside, Rick laying Carl down on a gurney as Denise rushed over, medical gloves already on.

Michonne quickly explained what happened as Denise began to work on Carl's eye, trying to stop the bleeding. Rick stumbled from the gurney in a daze as the medic started to clean and sew up his son, grabbing his machete and making his way back outside.

Beth shared a look with Daryl, who nodded and quickly hurried out after his friend to make sure nothing happened to him in his state of shock. It was only the that Beth noticed Spencer and Aaron were in the room, along with another survivor named Heath.

Aaron approached her first "Beth, what the hell happened out there?"

She could only wordlessly shake her head, the events of the day starting to seep in all at once. Spencer came forward next, anger and fear clear in his eyes.

"My mother, have you seen her? She was near your house when all this started" he asked hopefully.

Beth's mouth was suddenly inexplicably dry, how was she going to tell him that his mother was gone? Lips trembling, she took a deep breath before speaking.

"Spencer… I-I'm so sorry, we-there was nothing we could do" she stammers

A range of emotions cross Spencer's face, pain, disbelief sadness, before settling on pure anger. Before she can explain what happened a hand strikes down hard on her face, sending her to the floor in shock.

"You bitch! This is your fault, ever since you arrived everything's turned to shit. She was only over there so she could try and talk to you. Her blood is on your hands" he snarled.

He raises his hand to strike her again when Aaron intervenes, pushing him back while Michonne's hand shoots out to her katana from where she's standing with Carl and Denise.

"You better think carefully about your next move Spencer. I don't want to have to restrain you" Aaron says, trying to keep a sense of calm in the room.

Beth stays on the floor, flashes of Dawn striking her from her time at Grady flashing through her mind. Spencer looks down at her with hate before storming off to another part of the clinic, Heath following him. Aaron turns, helping her off the floor.

"You alright? He got you pretty good" he asks as she gingerly touches the swelling side of her face, fingers running over the bump of the scar that runs across her cheekbone.

"Yeah, I'm fine… you think there's any way this won't bruise?" she asks

He takes a look at the fast spreading redness covering her cheek and sighs, shaking his head "Sorry, probably a nasty one too"

She winces, tasting blood in her mouth and runs her tongue along her bottom lip, hissing when felt a cut on the corner from her teeth catching her lip. Going to the nearby sink, she spits out the blood, grabbing a cloth and wetting it with some of the water from her bottle before holding it to her lip.

She looks at Michonne, who's glancing at the door through which Spencer stormed through with a look of disgust on her face "Don't Michonne, we don't have time for fighting right now. Leave him be"

Michonne looks at her incredulously "How can you act like what he just did was okay?"

"He's hurting, he's lost both his parents in a matter of days. He's not thinking straight" Beth answers, wincing as she presses the cloth to her cheek.

"And that gives him the right to beat your face black and blue?"

"No, I'm just saying that he's not himself right now"

"Daryl's going to kill him you know?" Michonne says, earning a nod from Beth.

"I know, I might need your help reining him in"

"No way! I hope Daryl gives him exactly what he deserves" Michonne says with a slight smirk

"Michonne come on!" Beth practically begs "we already have enough to worry about without Daryl beating the life out of Spencer. Carl needs us to focus on his right now, not pull punches" she says, knowing Michonne's weakness for the teenager.

Michonne looks down at Carl, whose just finishing being stitched up by Denise, before nodding "We probably still won't be able to stop him, but I'll help hold him back"

Michonne eventually joins Rick and Daryl outside, leaving Beth to watch over Carl and worry about how Daryl would react. The minutes tick by slowly, the side of Beth's face getting more swollen with every second that passes. What she wouldn't give for an ice-pack or some concealer right now. She shakes away the thought, people had died today and here she was, worrying about what her face looked like? She felt shame wash over her as the front door burst open, Rick, Daryl and Michonne coming in, covered in walker blood.

It's obvious by the look on Daryl's face that Michonne's already let him in on what happened, rage evident in his eyes as he storms in "Where is he?"

Beth quickly approaches him, grabbing onto one of his arms "Daryl don't, it was an accident!"

"The fuck it was! Have you seen your face, that ain't no accident!" he snarls, swearing under his breath when he took another look at her face

"Daryl, please" she begged, keeping her grip on his arm tight "We don't have time for this, we have more important things to worry about right now"

"Ain't nothin more important" he mumbles, one of his hands reaching towards her face so he could take a better look "He hurt you"

"I'm okay Daryl" she says, sensing that this was about more than the bruise on her face "It's just a bruise, it'll fade"

"I shouldn't have left you in here, I should've been with you, you got hurt again because of me" he mutters, dropping his eyes to the floor.

She senses the double meaning behind his words and moves her hand from his arm up to his face, despite the fact they had an audience she needed him to understand "Daryl, I'm here okay? I'm not going anywhere. It's not like last time"

He leans into her hand, letting himself relax for a moment before pulling away, flushing red when he realised Rick, Michonne and Gabriel had witnessed their exchange. Mumbling something about securing the clinic, he walks off, leaving Beth to face Michonne's knowing looks.

"Looks like you didn't need my help at all" she smirks, causing Beth to turn pink and bite her lip.

The moment is interrupted by Carl grunting, starting to come out of his unconscious state. Rick rushes to his son's side, grabbing his hand as Carl's eye opens slowly. He weeps tears of joy and relief as Carl talks to him, in pain but alive.

…


	9. Rebuilding

Make my Way Back

Chapter 9

(I don't own TWD)

….

Carl recovered slowly over the week following the fall of Alexandria, spending most of his time inside with Judith while anyone who survived helped rebuild. Glenn, who had been outside of Alexandria on a run with Nicolas, a survivor from Alexandria had yet to return, causing Maggie to be wracked with worry.

Daryl had barely said two words to her since that night, choosing to take more shifts on watch and volunteering for jobs left and right. She wanted to talk to him about their kiss, had he meant to do it? Did he regret it? Had he changed his mind? She knew what she felt for him, it had been slowly building when they were out on their own together, their time apart during and after Grady only strengthening it.

She bit into her bottom lip as she helped hold down the large board as Abraham hammered it down, Rosita and Michonne on either side. They had to rebuild the fence so the first few days were focused on cleaning out the debris and now rebuilding. It had taken a couple of days but they were almost done, sweat beading on everyone's brows.

"Beth, you doing alright?" Michonne asked, noting the way Beth grimaced as her stomach flipped from the heat.

"M'fine, it's just the sun. Reminds me of the summers back home" Beth replied, swallowing dryly.

"You're starting to turn pink, go inside for a bit before you faint" she suggested, looking her up and down.

"It's okay Michonne, I feel fine"

"Yeah, and then in two minutes when you pass out I'll have that redneck of yours after me"

Beth blushed despite the heat, stubbornly refusing to back down "I'm fine Michonne, I can work just like everyone else"

"Everybody else doesn't have a bullet wound in their head"

Beth scowls at that "Thanks for reminding me, you're not gonna get off my back until I go, are you?

Michonne shakes her head with a smile

"…Fine, have fun one person down" she says, dusting off her hands on her pants. She goes inside, joining Carl and Judith for lunch. Not even twenty minutes later there's a knock at the door and she leaves the siblings to answer it.

Maggie is standing on the other side, twisting her hands nervously "can we talk?"

Beth nods, ushering her inside and towards her room. Maggie glances at the broken crossbow bolts lying on the drawers next to the bed but chooses to say nothing, sitting on the bed.

"Beth… I-I'm so sorry" she says, quickly starting to cry "I should've looked for you, I shouldn't have given up on you. I'm so sorry"

Beth sits down next to her weeping sister, wrapping her arms around her she lets her cry onto her shoulder "It's okay… it's okay Mags. I forgive you"

That only makes Maggie cry harder, clinging onto her sister. Beth joins in at one point, her own sobs mingling with her sister's. Eventually they tear themselves apart, sniffing and wiping their eyes.

"Beth how can you forgive me? I abandoned you, more than once"

"Life's too short to be so bitter Maggie, last week… I could've lost you and you would've still thought that I hated you. I don't want to fight anymore" Beth says, wiping her cheeks "especially now I have a little niece or nephew on the way"

Maggie grabs at her stomach with a sad smile "Rick told you… Beth I don't think I can do this alone"

Beth grabs her wrists "Don't talk like that Maggie, you don't know what's happened"

Maggie shakes her head "He's been gone for too long Beth, something's gone wrong I can feel it"

"Don't Maggie, stressing yourself out like that isn't good for you or the baby. Glenn would never leave you, not if he had any say in it" Beth says, trying to sound like the hopeful, optimistic Beth that her sister once knew "I'll send Daryl out tomorrow if he's not back, he'll probably come back with Glenn and a deer or two"

Maggie lets out a watery chuckle "Speaking of the redneck archer, what's going on with you two?"

Beth shrugs "You know men, run off whenever things get complicated"

Her sister frowns "I thought you two were pretty close?"

"We were, or at least I thought we were" she bites into her lip "We kissed, but now…. he's avoiding me. I can't help thinking that maybe I did something wrong, maybe he changed his mind. Maybe he liked the old Beth" she mumbles the last part, Maggie barely catching it

"Beth, you can't honestly think that! The man looks at you like you're an angel sent from the heavens or something" Maggie says, making Beth smile "If you want anything to change, you need to talk to him. No one can afford to waste time anymore"

A shout from outside interrupts their conversation, Glenn's voice calling out Maggie's name filtering through the air. The sisters glance at each other in shock for a moment before bounding downstairs, Maggie already in tears again.

The older woman barely makes it onto the front porch before she's swept up by her husband, his own tears trailing down his face as they embrace. They fall to the floor, crumpling in on each other in a mess of tears and kisses and they check each other over for any sign of injury, not giving a thought to the fact that they had an audience.

Beth watches them with a smile, her eyes flickering up and as if they were magnets, immediately locking with Daryl's. She nods towards the house, already moving back up to their room. She sits on the bed, waiting for a few minutes before he comes in.

"S'everything alright?" he asks gruffly, keeping his distance from the bed

"That depends, you gonna tell me why you've been avoiding me?" she asks, turning to face him even though he would not meet her eyes

"I ain't been avoiding you"

"I'm not stupid Daryl, you practically run whenever I come near you" she says "Did I do something wrong? Is it because I didn't respond when you kissed me? Because I didn't exactly have time"

"No, it's not that" he groans

"Then what?" she asks, exasperated "… Is it because I'm not the same? Maybe…. Maybe you liked the Beth from before and I'm not her anymore?"

He looks up, horrified "No! Course that ain't it! That honestly what you think?"

"I don't know! I don't know what's going on in your head anymore, you keep pushing me away!"

"Cause I can't lose you again!" he bursts out, immediately stunning her into silence "I-it almost killed me before and we weren't… we weren't even together then.."

"So how could you handle it if we were anything more" she finishes for him, moving forward so she could reach out and cup his face with one hand "Daryl… I can't promise nothing is ever going to happen to me"

"I ain't gonna let anything happen t-"

"Just let me talk" she says, cutting off his protest "This world is too unpredictable, we don't know if we're going to get overrun by walkers tomorrow. But I'm not going to let anything take me away from you, not without a fight. That I can promise"

"You deserve better than some old redneck" he mutters, still staring at his palms

"There is no one better" she says "You ran all night after a car that had taken me, you tracked down the people who kidnapped me and came to rescue me"

"Yeah and look how that ended up" he mutters, the image of her falling to the ground after being shot in the head echoing in his mind

"None of that matters now, I made my way back, to you. I want to be with you, the only question left now is, do you wanna be with me?" she asks, moving her hands so they gently covered his, his rough palms scratching against hers.

"Course I wanna be with you" he mutters

"So, what's the problem then?" she asks softly, their eyes both rising to meet almost instantaneously

"I…I'm not good at this type of thing… I ain't really ever…" he trails off, leaving her to figure it out

"I don't know what I'm doing either Daryl, I've never felt what I feel about you before…but that's the beauty of having someone, you get to figure it out together" she says, moving in closer to him

"I don't know how to change, girl"

"I'm not asking you to. I happen to like you just the way you are Daryl Dixon" she says, dropping his hands and moving hers back up to his face "We can take this as slow as you want Daryl, we don't even have to tell anyone if you don't feel ready"

He leans into her hand, his gruff hair on his chin scratching against her palm "Ain't gonna be like Glenn and Maggie"

She nods "I don't want to be Glenn and Maggie, I wanna be us. Daryl and Beth. Now will you please stop trying to make excuses and kiss me? Ever since the first one all I've wanted is a repeat"

He gives her a small smile, it barely raises the corners of his lips but for her it's everything. She allows his to remove her hands from his face, placing his own on hers and leans in, her eyes drifting shut just as their lips meet.

His mouth is soft, gentle against hers, barely pressing against her as his thumbs stroke her cheeks. She leans into him, further deepening the kiss and winding her arms around his neck. Just as she's about to attempt to slip her tongue into his mouth, they're interrupted by a cough at the door.

They break apart quickly, both flushing deeply as they make contact with a sheepish looking Glenn, who hesitantly steps into the room "uh… sorry. I'm sorry… Rick's looking for you Daryl"

Daryl grunts in annoyance and glances at her before leaving, too embarrassed to say anything. Beth turns to her brother in law, who's smirking at her "Glenn Rhee, don't think that just because you're my brother in law and the father of my niece or nephew that I won't still punch you "

Glenn blinks at her in surprise, the Beth he knew from the prison would never threaten physical violence, and he could tell just by the way she was looking at her that she wasn't joking "What did I do? I didn't know you two were going to be in here making out like a couple of teenagers"

"I mean it Glenn, not a word of this to anyone. Not even Maggie. And don't tease him, it took us long enough to get here, if you screw this up I will make sure you can never have babies again"

Glenn nods, inwardly shuddering at the glare Beth was giving him. He leaves, one hand instinctively protecting his nether regions which has Beth laughing. Things were good, if only they knew how long that would last for.

….

Do you guys want me to introduce Negan into the story? And if so, should the deaths remain canon, or would you like me to mix it up a bit?

Review and let me know!


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